


Haven and Hellhounds

by Imgoingtoregret_thisinthefuture



Category: Original Work
Genre: Accidental Baby Acquisition, Brian is a little shit, Brian is emotionally constipatedTM, But so is Alex, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Explicit Language, Father-Son Relationship, Found Family, Im trying my best - freeform, M/M, Morally Ambiguous Character(s), Mutual Pining, Not Actually Unrequited Love, POC Character(s), Poor Life Choices, Post-Apocalypse, Posted Elsewhere, Road Trips, Running from evil people, Russian Character(s), Silas is the smartest one out of the two adults, The Author Regrets Everything, Touch-Starved, Two Fathers, Zombies, just like in real life!/j - freeform, lgbtq character(s), no beta we die like men, starts off bad but gets better (hopefully) - freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-16 06:55:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29946165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Imgoingtoregret_thisinthefuture/pseuds/Imgoingtoregret_thisinthefuture
Summary: During the zombie Apocalypse, humanity tries its best to survive. Brian, an ex marine, makes the poor choice to join a group of cruel travelers named the Hellhounds. After spending many years under the reign of their tyrannical leader, he escapes with a fellow member by the name of Alex and escapes in a van that unbeknownst to the two had an orphaned child living in it. Now in the care of a child and running from a group of people that would do anything to have their head on a stick, all three must learn how to live together on the road, and what it means to be a family.
Relationships: (oc)Brian Brown/(oc)Alexander Turgenev





	Haven and Hellhounds

**Author's Note:**

> Im just trying to better my writing out of hope that one day I can actually turn this story into a full novel. Please critique me if you read this!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ooh whats this ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°).  
> Brian and Alex are both dilfs. You're Welcome.  
> Also Brian is currently a complete asshole, but he gets better eventually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter really tested my skills. I think that it also improved them, so it was totally worth it. Please critique!

“I genuinely hate you.”

Brian groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose out of exasperation.

“I'm not even joking. Comrade, you are the actual worst.” Whined Alex.

“I'm fed up with you acting like a little bitch. Just keep moving and shut up.” Brian's voice was tense and annoyed.

Alex sent him an angry glance, but kept his mouth shut. The large packs they were carrying had caused the man to be too tired to even talk back to Brian as he usually did. Brian looked away from the exhausted Russian and back to the path in front of him. His back and calves were aching, but he continued on with the trek out of pure determination to get back to the van. His mind was swimming with hazy thoughts of laying down on the bed that he called his own, and closing his eyes, but the exhausted pants from the man behind him tore him out of his mind and back into the reality of the situation that was currently at hand.

They were carrying heavy backpacks full of supplies that they had salvaged from an abandoned supermarket that they had seen while driving through a small town that had looked relatively untouched, and luckily the inside was also in decent condition minus a couple of zombies stumbling around in the isles. Alex was carrying the brunt of the haul, while Brian had picked up the smaller pack. Brian didn't think that the vain man did enough work, and that he probably needed the workout. At the time he had thought that the man needed the workout, but strangely he regretted the decision now. If Brian's bag was heavy, the other man's bag was probably excruciating to carry.

Brian also now regretted parking so far away from the market, as the trek back was tiring. He could have put the packs in a shopping cart and wheeled them back, but the sidewalk was too uneven and the road was cracked and bumpy from lack of upkeep. Brian caught sight of their van and barely stifled a sigh of relief. The van up ahead was a saving grace to both men, and they began to pick up their pace. Brian reached the vehicle first and opened the door before stumbling inside and pulling the pack off of his back and dropping it onto the ground.

Alex entered shortly after him and did the same before slumping into the dinette next to the wall across from the door and letting his head fall back with a sigh. His neck was bared and his T-shirt had slid up to reveal an enticing sliver of skin above the waistband of his jeans. Alex’s eyes met Brian’s and the two men silently gazed at each other. Brian swore that a bead of sweat rolled down his head at that moment and he tore his eyes away from the other man. He was just as confused at his actions as Alex was.

Awkwardly, he walked over to the cabinet under the counter near the back of the van and crouched down with a grunt to be at its level to knock on the doors, as his spine ached in opposition. He stepped back and the doors pushed open to reveal a little boy with dark curly hair wearing bunny ears. His dark wide eyes looked up to gaze into Brians and he let out a small smile before crawling out of the cabinet.

“We got some more food. Found a new novel on a shelf and nabbed it for you, it's in the red bag.”

The boy's smile grew wider, “thanks.” He mumbled with his small and dainty voice.

Brian took another step back and scoffed, embarrassed by the boy's gratitude. His mouth was a tight line. Alex leaned out of his seat in the dinette to look over at the two conversing. “Comrades, our bounties have been plentiful today! I recommend a celebration.” He smiled widely.

Brian’s tight mouth turned down into an upside down u, and a sharp line appeared between his eyebrows. “We have better things to do than dance around. We need to put the food away, and continue on our drive. A celebration would only waste our time ‘comrade’.”

Alex tilted his head, visibly unaffected by Brians disparagement. “Oh, common Brian! Stop being such a tight a-,” Alex nervously glanced at the child, “-a jerk, and loosen up! Enjoy yourself, comrade.”

Brian’s frown deepened and he was just about to open his mouth to send back a disapproving retort when the boy, Silas, spoke up. “That sounds fun. Jeremiah says he would like to attend.”

Jeremiah, his toy bear, stayed as expressionless as ever. Brian looked between Silas and Alex, both sending puppy dog eyes toward him. He sighed and gave in, slumping his shoulders.

“Fine. But I have no idea what in the world you're even going to do. We don't have anything you co-”

“Thank you! Thank you friend, you will not regret!” Alex interrupted Brian, his smile turning wide and true making the corners of his eyes crinkle enticingly.

His handsome baby blue eyes sparkled with gratitude, and the gray streaked blonde hair that framed his face seemed to almost glow in that moment. Brian’s previous blush returned fiercely, _What the hell is wrong with me?_ He suddenly realized that Alex was saying something to him.

“-rth to Brian to? Hell-”

“Uh right yeah. Have fun or whatever.” Brian stammered out and rushed past Alex into the cabin of the van and plopped himself down on the driver's seat.

Alex was confused by Brian’s unusual spectacle, but thoughts of celebrations pushed it out of his mind. He had a party to plan!

* * *

The van bumped and rattled around on the uneven road. Brian's knuckles were white where they were grasping the wheel, and he had a pinched expression on his face, his posture rigid with annoyance. The 80’s rock music emanating from the vans front speakers was being drowned out by the loud sounds occurring from the back of the van, when suddenly a loud crash was heard from the back with an angry curse quickly following. Brian had been at his wits end, and the crash was enough to send him off the edge.

Slamming on the breaks and jerking the car, he pushed himself out of the driver's seat and stomped into the back area of the car with an enraged expression painting his face.

“What the fuck do you think you're doing?!” Brian stood rigidly in the door to the cabin, a vein popping in his face.

Alex nervously looked up at Brian from where he laid sprawled out on the ground. A bead of sweat rolled off his brow at the sight of the enraged man, and he sent a sheepish smile towards Brian. “Comrade, you shouldn't frown so much! Wouldn't want to wrinkle your pretty face!” The Russian’s sheepish smile turned into a smirk.

Caught off guard by the compliment, Brian took a surprised step back before recollecting himself. “I wouldn't frown so much if you weren't such a fucking dumb-ass all the time!” Brian gritted his teeth in frustration and clenched his fists.

Alex pushed himself off of the floor and grimaced at the pop that emitted from his back while doing so. He stood up to look Brian in the eyes, and smiled. “I'm only setting up for the party Brian. No need to be so upset.” Something menacing glittered in the blue ocean of his eyes.

Brian gritted his teeth and glared at Alex. “Do you seriously need to do that while i'm driving? You should be resting your body or something useful. All the noise you're making is distracting me while I'm trying to drive!” Frustrated, Brian exhaled out of his nose loudly.

“You said yourself that we could hold a celebration! I am only setting up for it! Look!” Alex took a step back and waved his arms out in a sweeping motion.

Brian begrudgingly looked at the room and was surprised to see that there had been DIY’d decorations put up around the cabin. Strings of paper people holding hands were spread out high on the left and right walls, and a wreath of pine cones held together by glue was hanging on the window on the door that opened to the outside. Paper snowflakes hung down from the ceiling, taped to it with string. Staring at the room in awe Brian was confused on how Alex even got the supplies to do something so extraordinary.

Alex smiled at him “Silas made most of the decorations from his arts and crafts box, I hung them up.”

Shit, Brian must have said his thoughts out loud.

Alex let out a cute little laugh-cute?, and pointed to the cabinet that Silas used as his bedroom. “You should go tell Silas about how you think this is extraordinary. I'm sure the kid would appreciate a compliment from you-” Alex’s voice lowered, “-since he really looks up to you, you know.”

Brian stood there wearing a blank flabbergasted expression, his eyes strangely drawn to the other man's pink lips. “Really?”

Alex rolled his eyes at the shorter man. “Yes, really. It's very obvious! Comrade, how have you not noticed this yet?” He seemed surprised at Brian's blindness.

Brian huffed and turned away from Alex, facing towards the front of the van. “There's nothing about me to admire. I don't know what you're playing here Alex, but i'm not going to fall for it.” His voice was tense.

Brian started to walk back to the drivers seat to continue their trip, when he was interrupted by Alex’s exasperated sigh. “You know that not everyone has it out for you, right?” He sounded disheartened by Brian’s bullheadedness.

Brian stilled at that and sharply twisted around, shocking Alex with his enraged expression. “Who the hell do you think you are? I'm the driver, and I could kick your ass out of this van and leave you for dead any-day.” Brian was only bluffing, he would never leave Alex for dead voluntarily. He honestly didn't know why he was being so cruel to the man.

Alex, shocked by Brian's cruelty, took another step backwards and bumped into the back half wall that separated the queen bed from the kitchen/living area. “ты такой Засранец Brian! What did I do to upset you so goddamn much?” Alex was rendered so upset that he had unconsciously switched back to his mother tongue language.

“Everything, Alex, Everything! I should have left you to rot with the Hellhounds!” Alex’s face fell into one of surprise, and then sorrow.

He was opening and closing his mouth as though trying to say something but his throat isn't letting him. Brian waited silently for the blonde to respond to his cruel words, while holding an argument with himself in his mind.

“Brian, I-” Alex’s response was cut off by a loud crash.

The doors of Silas’s cabinet had caused the loud noise, as they had been forcefully pushed open. Silas rolled out of the space and jumped up onto his feet. Both arguing men were caught off guard by the appearance of the boy, as they had momentarily forgotten of his presence in the room. His eyes were wet with unshed tears, and his face was downturned and angry.

“Uh-um, kid, um. See-” Brian stammered, unnerved by the sudden appearance of the child, but was interrupted by them.

“Please don't kill each other!” Tears flowed, now freed from Silas’s eye’s.

Alex sheepishly shuffled from foot to foot and wringed his hands and Brian awkwardly rubbed at the back of his neck.

“Uh, kid we're not gonna kill each other or anything. Thats, uh, not what was going on here…” Brian didn't really know what to say in this situation. He wasn't very good with kids or emotions, so having to deal with the two of them combined was practically unthinkable to the man.

Alex cleared his throat. “I believe that we have been unmoving for quite a bit, Brian. Maybe you should start the van?” He sent Brian a nervous look while saving him from having to talk to the distressed child.

It made Brians heart ping with regret. Alex did alot for Brian, and yet Brian still was terrible to him. He grimaced and turned away from Alex, and ambled into the front of the van, sitting down in the driver's seat. Turning the key in the hole, the van started up again and music began playing from the CD player. Muffled talking was coming from the living space of the van, and Brian frowned while tightening his grip on the wheel even though the RV wasn't even moving yet. He was too busy thinking about the argument that had been previously occurring to start driving.

Brian could be an asshole sometimes, he wasn't so blind as to not know that but it had been a long time since he had been so cruel to another person. Honestly, he didn't even know why he was surprised by his actions. Something about the Russian made always made Brian on edge and more alert. Brian sighed and peeled his hands off the wheel and rubbed his face before returning them to the wheel and pushing on the gas. He could mull over this some more while he was trying to sleep later.

* * *

The sun had begun to sink under the mountain like a lion retreating to its den, and Brian realized that he should park somewhere and start dinner. He dreaded having to interact with the two passengers in the back, and felt nauseous even thinking about it. It would have to happen eventually, of course, but until then he intended to delay it for as long as possible.

A stray zombie hobbled by on the road, and caught Brian’s eye while he drove around it to avoid it. Its rotting flesh and missing arm no longer bothered Brian. He had become so used to the sight of gore that it was like an old friend to him.  _ Blood splattered on the ground, screaming and laughter. “Good job, Brian. I'm proud of you. I knew you'd be a good addition to our group.” Cruel smiles and patted backs. The Hellhounds were a ruthless bunch, and Brian had been stupid enough to join them, enticed by the promises of food and shelter. Oh, how he regretted it now, with the blood of the innocents seeping into his hands to call their home.  _ Brian came back to reality when he noticed he was serving off the path. Jerking the car back onto the road, he noticed that he was gripping the steering wheel like it had attacked him. Swallowing, he loosened his grip and continued on.

The sun was almost gone from the sky now, bathing it in breathtaking reds and pinks. The driver spotted a back road with a sign promising that there were campgrounds down it, and drove onto the exit. He was not going for the campgrounds, but instead the possibility of more supplies and a place to park for the night. It was risky, of course, as lots of families at the start of the apocalypse had formed settlements in campgrounds on their way to Canada. The idiots had believed that they were “close enough” to the country, and could settle here until the military took care of their little green problem. Most of them had starved to death during the first winter, or been overcome by hoards of zombies that had traveled the highways.

It had been so long since the start of the pandemic that most of the early zombies had rotted away into bones. Brian darkly hoped that this encampment had been destroyed early on.

He pulled into the parking lot for the camp and turned off the van, pulling the key out of the ignition. He pushed himself off of the driver's seat and stretched his old bones. He suddenly felt a pair of eyes on him. 

Turning around, he saw Alex standing in the doorway to the cabin of the van. He was leaning on the side of the doorway, arms crossed, face blank. “It's time for sleep, yes?”

Brian nodded and grabbed the cover for the front window, pushing it up onto the front of the van to block light and view into it. The cabin quickly lost its lighting, casting them in shadows, the only light in the van coming from the glowing hanging lights on Silas’s blanket fort. 

Brian cleared his throat and tried to walk past Alex, but the Russian held an arm out, obstructing Brian from walking out of the room. Brian’s eyebrows lowered and a confused frowned appeared on his face. 

Funnily, Alex seemed confused by the action himself even though he had been the one to instigate it. The blonde man cleared his throat and stood up straight before looking straight into Brian's eyes. “Comrade, I…” He hesitated for a moment, “I'm sorry. For anything I did I- I shouldn't of upset you. It was wrong of me. I understand if you want to kick me out, but please let me say goodbye to Silas first.” His voice was hushed and took a desperate tone at the end. 

Brian's eyebrows shot up and his jaw dropped. He had no idea that Alex had been thinking he was going to kick him off of the van! “Alex! No.” As though possessed by a spirit, he reached out and grasped both of Alex’s shoulders in his hands. “I'm not kicking you out. I-im sorry that I made you think that... “ Brian stared into the others blue eyes.

Brian awkwardly cleared his throat and squeezed the other man's shoulders, only now realizing how close both of them were standing. Warm puffs of breath reached his face, and he blushed a deep red, silently thanking god that the inside of the van was dark enough to conceal it. He didn't know how he was supposed to explain it to Alex if he could see it.

Brian couldn't see the Russians expression, but from experience could tell he was probably wearing that dumb crooked smile of his. “Comr- _ Brian _ . I am glad to hear this. I send thanks for letting me stay here,” He then leaned forward so that his mouth was parallel with Brian’s right ear, “but you should probably also talk to Silas. He thinks we hate each other.” His voice was low and Brian had to suppress a shiver, “I believe that he too is afraid that you will leave him.”

Brian grimaced and turned away, he got the feeling that he was being scolded by the other man. He nodded in the dark, silently agreeing to talk to the child. He felt like an idiot in the moment, a piece of trash, an ant about to be stepped on by a sadistic giant. 

“Speaking of Silas- what are we supposed to do about him? I don't imagine we are the best parental figures. Mayb-” Alex was cut of by Brian

“We can speak of this some other time, Alex. We need to make dinner and rest right now, not discuss parenting.” He pushed past the Russian and into the living space of the van.

Alex stifled a sigh and turned around to follow him out. The room was lit up by a gas lamp casting light onto the decorations that had been previously put up for a party. “I made rice and beans while you were driving. Serve yourself, Comrade.” Alex slid into the dinette next to Silas, and Brian began to dump a large serving of food into his bowl.

They ate in relative silence, minus the noises of eating. Brian noticed that Silas seemed to be avoiding looking at him, and was hunched over. Alex also seemed to notice Silas’s sulking, and pushed his now empty bowl away from himself. “Comrades, I believe that it is party time! We shall dance and enjoy ourselves!” Brian smothered a groan of despair.

Silas’s head shot up at that, and looked between the two men in front of him until his eyes rested on Brian. He seemed to be looking for permission. “Uh, yeah party time. Can't wait.” Brian tried to make his voice as convincingly happy as possible.

Alex pointed at Brian and his crooked smile spread across his face. “Brian, I believe that Silas had something planned to show us!” He clapped his hands together and pushed himself out from the dinettes seat before backing up to give Silas room to walk out.

The dark skinned boy slid out of the bench and stood next to Alex, his eyes downcast. Brian cleared his throat, “Oh? And what could that be?” He was playing along with Alex’s sudden change in attitude.

“I have acquired the skill of shadow puppeteering.” His face was his normal deadpan. Brian didn't think he'd ever been so glad to see the boy expressionless. 

Alex pulled a flashlight out from a high cabinet and passed it to the child before sliding back into the bench he had previously been seated at. The boy turned off the gas lamp, and turned on the flashlight causing a white circle of light to illuminate the wall in front of the dinette. 

He moved his hands into impressive recreations of animals. Coyotes, rabbits, birds, a lama. Brian and Alex watched respectively as the boy continued on with his show. 

Later, after the boy had long since finished, Brian laid in the queen bed at the back of the van. The soft snores coming from the bed up near the front of the van reached his ears as he was deep in thought.  _ Does Silas actually look up to me?  _ He frowned to himself.  _ What is there to admire?  _ Brian sighed before turning over in the bed to face the right wall.

_ Why does Alex even care to tell me? Why does he care at all?  _ The whole ordeal was honestly only leaving him with more questions than answers, and he should probably try to get some sleep. But something about Alex kept him up late, lost in thought. Eventually when even the insects in the grass had rested their heads, Brian finally fell into a dreamless slumber.


End file.
